Your windshield number is an FW2489 GTN. Foreign Windshield #2489, Green Tint, No hardware.
These parts can be made at a variety of factories around the world. Suburu, like many manufacturers, contracts different companies at different times (pricing and quality contracts) to make your glass. The heater element is imbedded in the lamination between the two pieces of glass. Or sometimes is bonded to the surface of the glass.
I work for one of the largest manufacturers of auto glass in the world, seventeen years, and I have never heard of the heater element causing a break in the glass. Unless the outside temperature was well below zero and your heater could generate a extreme amount of heat within the space of a few seconds, then the possible result is just a stone chip that was previously not seen that the heater element just aggrivated and caused to 'run'. I have a very difficult time with the analysis of uneven/incomplete tempering.
The windshield (for that matter all the glass) in you car can be as much as
40% of the structural integrity of your car. That glass was made to handle stress from vibration, heat, cold, and even impacts from stones. But it is also glass. It will break. I've seen a person hit the side window of a car with a hammer and cause no damage at all. I had a large rock hit my windshield and saw a small pit taken from the glass. No other damage. I also saw a new car drive out of a mall parking lot and hit a bump. CRACK. Sometimes the stress from the movement, sometimes the impact of something hard. Sometimes a small unnoticed stone chip in the winter...The one thing I will advise is that you should not EVER let you insurance company choose you place of repair/replacement. That is your choice. They will try to schedule and may even make comments like "we can't guarantee their work" or "they will charge you to much". That is a load of bull. They just have a deal where the replacement company of their choice charges them less, not you, just them. End of story. Some insurance carriers have their "glass claims" calls answered by the repair/replacement company directly. You may not even be calling you insurance company at all. Try asking them who they work for on the line, NOT who they are answering for, but who the person you are talking to works for. You may be in for a surprise.
Take a look at the DOT number on the logo of your glass. That is the actual address of the maker of your glass. Every plant in the world has its own DOT number if they are selling in the USA and no plant shares its number with another plant. Your glass might have been replaced already on the lot. It has happened. Vandalism, test drive stone chip, etc. You should shop around, check the guarantees. Ask these questions. Years experience of the installer that will work on you car. Certification. OEM glass? OEM adhesives? Your car manufacturer states that a certain adhesive must be used due to tensile strength, airbags, cure times, etc. Call the dealership and get that information and match it with what you find out. An improper installation can put your life at risk as well as cause serious damage to your car. Water leaks can cause rust and electrical damage not to mention taking away from the fore mentioned structural intregity of the vehicle. Your life, your choice.
appointment